Device for graphically representing flood conditions



May 1, 1951 Filed Sept. 9, 1948 F. B. HARKNESS 2,550,692

DEVICE FOR GRAPHICALLY REPRESENTING FLOOD CONDITIONS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ll |s 7,8 9 10 11 l Frank .3. rknes's' May 1, 1951 F. B. HARKNESS 2,550,692

v DEVICE FOR GRAPHICALLY REPRESENTING FLOOD CONDITIONS Filed Sept. 9, 194a 2 sneaks-sheet 2 111i 3 .10- IL LUS TEA T/NG METHOD OF OPE RA 770/V FOR How SCALE FOR wrzow HmRoaRAPH Patented May 1 195i UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2 ,550,692 DEVICE FOR eaarhwnnr aEmesimme FLOOD CONDITIONS Frank B. Harhness, Louisville, Ky. Application September 9, 19-48, sriai No. 48,526

(01. 33- 27) (Grantee under the act of March 3, 1883, as

6 Claims.

amended April 30, 1928; 370 0. G. 757) g The invention described herein may be factured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes, without payment to me of any royalty thereon. 7 H

The present invention provides an improved instrument for use in connection with the studies of flood conditions in fioodedrivers and streams,

with particular reference to the determination of the manner of directing flood waters in given reaches of a flooded stream into fioodcontro] basins provided for the purpose of receiving such flood waters for eliminating or zninimi zing the amount of overflow from theriver banks.

The present invention provides a simplified plottinginstrument for these 1 studies, wherein the flood conditions in given reaches of a river may be plotted readily and rapidly, with the minimum of inaccuracies resulting from accidental displacement of the instrument during use.

, A further object of the intention is to produce an instrument which is simple in construction and readily and rapidly usable for producing out- .fiow hydrographs from plotted inflow hydrographs, its principal adaptation being for routing through reaches of rivers in connection with-'fiood studies. n Further objects of the present-invention reside in the details of construction, thearrangernents and combination of parts, and operation of the device as hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout.

In the drawings: v I

Fig. 1 represents a plan view of the improved plotting instrument of this invention;

I Fig, 2 is a transverse sectional elevation thereof, taken on the line II'II of Fig. 1, looking in the d-irection of the arrows;

Fig. 3 is a stillfurther sectional elevation, but

looking in a longitudinal direction, through the device taken on the line IIIIII of Fig. 1, lookiIIg-in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 4-- is a fragmentary sectional elevation of the carriage means of the device of the invention, the view being taken on the line IV-IV of Fig. 1; looking in the direction of the arrows,

and showing further details of a swivel mounting fpr the undercarriage of the device;

Fig. Bjisa sectional plan view, taken on the line V-"'-V of Fig.4, looking in thedirec tionof the; arrows I .Fi'gl t? is" adisconnected perspective view show} or sliding swivel connectionfo'r the translated t 2 A Fig. '7 is a sectional elevation taken 0h; use VI IVH of Figs. 1 and 3, looking in the direction of the mew; the view showing the parts of Fig. 6 in assembled relation) e l Fig. 8 is a fragmentary sectional elevation taken on the line III-v of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrows, the view showing details of the mounting of the tracing pointer; Fig. 9 is an enlarged sectional elevation of the mounting for the markihg device, showing .in enlarged details the mounting of the marking device'shownin Fig.3; H A I Fig. 10 is a ia rammae view, showing the device of the present invention in plan, the view illustrating the method of operation of the instrument of the presentinvention; I Fig. '11 is a graph -showil rfihprinciples n;- tje'rpreting the graph drawn by the instrument as'shown inFig. 10. e H '7 arer'nce' in detail to the various views of the drawings will be indicated hereinafter. I Generally speaking, the i'ns trument of the invention comprises a frameworkcarrying' a tracing pointer which is moved along a plotted inflow hydrogr'aph, while an undercarriage which attached to the framework by a linkage arrangem'enapa'rriesa pen or pencil which draws a hydrograph of th outfiow. The difference between the rates of flow of the inflow hydro'graph being traced and the hydro'graph' being drawn, is equal to a storage factor K mummies by the slope or rate of change of flow of the" outflow hydrograph. The storage factorK is a cha'acF teristic of reaches of streams, and thedevice is readily a" table to'any K value, the K s't'tin being i'll'di ted by a po'int'erdn a scale, it is appropriate to introduce time lag into .the

routing process, the tracing point'er is set back to the left a distance representing'th'e time lag at the time scale of the hyd'r'ographsi and the device then will raw the outflow hydrograp'h J h hti ir eft me s ale by that amount of time. When running the pencil pointer over 'theinflow hydrographyitfis important tl iatthe guidefbars be kept substan'- tially parallel with tfl ordinate axis and to f'ac1l i'- tate this, the device: may be mounted in adraftinig machine if'desired.

r The undercarriage of thedevice of this inventionnormally is inwhat may be" termedfits'f neutral positiorr In operation, it swings through other positions as" determined and as wurb seep from the drawings; In any position the ta ce ,r f' l ifs displacedfrom its neutral position: is eiqualflto the K" distance times the slope of the steering 3 bar of the undercarriage that passes through the sliding point, which in turn determines the direction of travel of the pen or pencil, and thus the rate of change of flow represented by the outflow hydrograph being produced.

The tracing pointer is set a distance away from the neutral position of the pen or pencil so that the pointer will not interfere with the swinging of the undercarriage and, by making this distance, measured parallel to the guide bars, equal to an integral number of divisions of the graph paper being worked on, the scale of the outflow hydrographs will be oifset in the direction of ordinates in amount equal to the said integral number of divisions, but otherwise the scales of the inflow and outflow hydrographs will be the same.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, it will be seen that the instrument of the present invention comprises two main components, namely, an upper T-shaped frame, designated generally at A on the drawings, and an undercarriage B, the movements of which are guided by the movements of the upper framework. The upper framework has two parallel guide bars I3, I which are fastened rigidly at their ends to blocks Il I9. These bars form a horizontal slot 2i in which a pencil part 23 of the undercarriage B slides freely. Mounted in the framework at right angles to the guide bars I3 and I5 is a horizontal worm screw 25, one end of which is freely-rotatably supported in a bearing 21 attached to the side of guide bar I5 near the mid-point of its length. The forward end of the worm screw 25 passes through a hole in end plate 29 and is freely-rotatably supported thereby. A knurled knob 3!, which is attached rigidly to the forward end of the worm screw 25, provides for convenience in rotating the worm screw manually.

A nut guide rod 33 is mounted parallel to the worm screw 25 and a short distance therefrom,

the guide rod 33 having one end rigidly attached to the bar I5 and the opposite end rigidly attached to the end plate 29.

A scale piece 35 is mounted parallel to the worm screw 25 and a short distance therefrom,

the scale piece 35 having one end rigidly attached to the guide bar I5 and its outer end rigidly attached to the end plate 29. Lines and numerals are inscribed on the scale piece as shown in Fig. 1, so as to indicate the K setting referred to above.

The rod 33 slidably carries a nut member 31 thereon, this nut member being provided with a plain hole extending through it for enabling it to slide freely along the guide rod 33, and a threaded hole 39 through which the worm screw 25 passes, so that the nut 31 freely moves along the worm screw by the rotation of this screw. Rigidl attached to the nut piece or member 31 is a sharp pointer II, the sharp end of which extends slightly over the scale piece 35 and is adapted to indicate the K setting on the scale inscribed on the scale piece 35. The nut member 3'! also is connected rigidly to a swivel post 43 that extends downwardly from the nut member 31.

The guide bars l3 and I5 carry adjustably thereon a tracing pointer support bar 45, the mounting of the support bar 45 being by means of a clip 41 and thumb screw 49, the support bar extending backwardly and horizontally relative to the guide bar I3. The tracing pointer ii is attached rigidly to a sleeve 53 which is freely slidable on tracing pointer support 45, so that the tracing pointer 51 extends downwardly with its end close to the sheet of graph paper C. The position of the sleeve 53 on the tracing pointer support bar 45 may be adjusted and locked in any position by a thumb screw 55 so as to represent any desired time lag.

The instrument frame is supported on three legs 51, 59, BI, there being one of such legs at each extremity of the framework. These legs are rounded at their lower ends for freely sliding over the paper C when the instrument is being used.

The undercarriage B is provided with an axle 63 on the ends of which are mounted freely rotatably the wheels 55, 61, which are retained in their positions on the axles by cotter pins 69, II, I3, I5. The peripheries of the wheels 65, 61 are composed of friction material to resist side slipping of the undercarriage B on the paper C, and to constrain the movements of the wheels to the direction of the undercarriage bar 11, which will be referred to in greater detail hereinafter.

Rigidly attached to the center of the axle 63 is an axle block I9. Rigidly attached to this axle block and extending therefrom horizontally and perpendicularly to the axle 52, and midway between the two wheels 65 and 61 is the undercarriage steering bar 11, mentioned above. Rigidly attached to the back of the axle block 79 and extending therefrom in a direction opposite to that of the undercarriage steering bar 11 is a bar SI which passes through a hole in a weight 83. This weight is freely-slidably mounted on the bar SI, and the position may be adjusted and secured by a set screw so as to maintain a suitable amount of upward pressure at the swivel mounting 8'! of the bar BI. The pencil guide post 23 is attached rigidly to the top of the axle block 79, and extends vertically upwardly therefrom midway between the two wheels 65 and 61 and directly over the axle 83. This post is a hollow tube, and its longitudinal hole is extended downwardly through the axle block I9 and axle 53 so as to receive in a free fit the pencil 89 which in use is placed in this hole with the scribing end downward so that the lead 9| marks on the paper C. A weight 93 is placed over the top of the pencil, the upper portion of which fits freely into a hole which extends part way through the weight. The weight 93 produces the desired pressure of the pencil lead 9i against the paper C so that the pencil mark will be clearly legible.

The undercarriage steering bar 'I'l passes freely slidably through hole 95 in a swivel slide piece 91. The swivel yoke mounting 81 has two extending prongs 99, ISI, which fit freely in the slots I03, I55 in the swivel joint slide piece 91. The swivel yoke 81 is provided with a vertical hole I61 which fits freely both slidably and rotatably on swivel post 43.

An elastic, resilient member, for example a rubber band, I09, has one end looped around the pencil post 13 and the other end is looped around the vertical rubber band holding post III, which is slidably mounted on the nut guide bar 33 and may be locked in various positions by the thumbscrew H3 so as to maintain the most suitable direction and magnitude of the pull exerted by the rubber band I09 on the pencil post I3. This pull materiall assists the undercarriage in rolling in the direction of the undercarriage steering bar I! without sliding on the paper C when the angle between the undercarriage steering'ba'r- 11 and the-nut guide bar 33'is large.

As has been indicated above, the instrument is designed especially for the routing of floods in rivers. As an example of such use, suppose it is required to determine the flows at the lower end of a reach of river that would result from a flood entering at the upper end of the reach, having the K values and time lag appropriate to that reach of the river determined from prior studies.

Now, let the flow into the reach be represented by the inflow hydrograph I I5, Fig. 10. First; the positionof the tracing pointer supporting bar 25 on the guide bars l3, I5, is adjusted" so that the offset distance, which is the perpendicular distance between the nut guide bar' 33 and the-tracing pointer-supporting bar 45, is equal to an integral number of principal divisions of the graph paper so that the origin of the flow scale-of the outflow hydrograph Ill" will fall exactlyupon a principal line of the graph paper 0. With the origin at the principal line, the flow scale of the. outflow hydrograph ill" i marked on the graph paper, using the same amount of flow per inch or other unit as was used in plotting the inflow hydrograph. The position of the tracing pointer 51: on the tracing pointer support bar 45' is then adjusted so that the time lag distance, at the time scale to which the inflow hydrograph is plotted; is that known to 'be'appropriate. The K setting known to be appropriate is next secured by turning the knob 38. The units frequently used in floodrouting are cubic feet per secondfor flow and day'second feet for storage in the reach and as the-K, factor rep-resents the ratio of change in storage to change in flow, it has the dimension days when these units are used. Therefore. in securing the proper K setting, the K distance shown by Fig. 1 is made equal to the appropriate K value at the time scale to which the inflow hydro'graph is plotted. The time scale to which the inflow hydrograph is plotted should not be, so small in relation to the flow scale that the, correspondingly small K distance will result in requiring the instrument to operate at undesiredly large, angles between the undercarriage steering bar 'lTand 'the'n'ut guid'ebar 33, as the possibility of skidding of the undercarriage wheels 65', ET on the paper C increases as the angle increases.

After makingthe foregoing adjustments, the instrument is positioned on the graph paper C with the tracin pointer 5| over the inflow hydrograph, H5 at a point near the beginning of tlie flood Where it is desired to begin the routing. The undercarriagethen is placed in such position that the pencil point 9! is at the outflow value known or assumed to be effective at the beginning of'the flood. The operator then moves the upper framework A in such manner that the tracing pointer 5| follows along the inflow hydrograph l l5, being careful at the same time to keep the pencil post guide bars 83 and parallel to the lines-of the graph paper running parallel with the" ordinate axis. The movement of the upper framework- A causes'the undercarriage B to follow, the latter beingsteered by the undercarriage steerin bar ll andbeing pushed along by the guide bars i3 and [Sand pulled by the rubber band 19. The marking device (pencil orpen) 9|, being carried along inthe pencil guide post of the undercarriage; drawsthe desired outflow hydrograph H'i, asil-lustrated in'Fig. 10. In the event that the appropriate K values are known to be diiferent for different rates of flow; the Ksetting is read just'ed at interval 'duringthe routing process by turning the knurled knob s1 so that the proper K value is used for each range-or flow To illustrate principles of the instrument with regard to flood routing, let it be considered that the rate at which" water is being stored in a reach of riveris equal to the difference between simultaneous rates-of inflow and outflow, IQ-,- and" is approximately equal to-the storage factor K multiplied by the rate of change in: outflow (see Fig. 11). Furthermore, it is characteristic of flood flows for a given outflow, there'isordinarily more water in storage in: a reach of river when the floodis rising than: when it is fallingbecause there. is more waterv flowing. in the upper? portion of. the reach inthe first case than in the second. Because of this condition, the accuracy of the flood routing is often improved by the introduction of a small amount of time lag, which in effect translates the developed outflow hydrograph to the right or later onthe time scale. Fig.- 11' is drawn with time lag shown therein, and with Ii representing the inflow at time n andQt representing the desired outflow at times dz, which islater than time h by the amount of the time lag.

It is apparent by componentsof thelineslVL-M and N-N of Fig. 11 that the distance marked principles involved, it is. obvious that conversely from the example given, had it beenrequired to produce the inflow hydrograph that wouldcause a given outflowhydrograph, this could be accomplished by interchanging the tracing pointer and scribing element, and moving the frame- Work so that the tracing pointer that would then be mounted on the undercarriage would follow the given outflow hydrograph, and thescribing element mounted on the framework would draw the desired inflow hydrograph. The framework of the instrument could be mounted if desired on a standard drafting machine-to facilitate keepe ing the guide bars of the framework parallel to the ordinateaxis while in operation.

While one embodiment and use of the invention has beenshown, it will be understood that this is only for illustrative purposes and that many modifications can be made in the detailed construction and use ofv the instrument without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention; and it will beunderstood that itisintended and desired to embrace within. the scope of this inventionv such modifications and changes that may be necessary toadapt it tovarying conditions and uses,,as defined by the appended claims.

Having thus, described my invention, whatI claim as newa'n'd wish to secure. by LettersPatent is:

1". instrument" for plotting the routing *or floods, which comprises, in combination, a framework, tracing means carried by the framework, instrumentalities enabling the tracing means to be laterally adjusted on the framework, an undercarriage carried by the framework, pivot means slidably mounted on the framework for swivelly connecting the undercarriage to the framework, a worm screw for longitudinally adjusting the pivot means, a scriber mounted on the undercarriage, a forwardly projecting arm pivotally connecting the framework and the undercarriage at the pivot means, and instrumentalities for causing the distance from the undercarriage to the pivot point to change automatically in a definitely controlled manner responsively to movement of the undercarriage about the pivot means while constraining movement of the undercarriage through a definite path with respect to the framework to which the undercarriage is connected.

2. An instrument for plotting the routing of floods, which comprises, in combination, a frame, tracing means carried by the frame, means enabling longitudinal and lateral adjustment of the tracing means relative to the frame, an undercarriage connected to the frame, scribing means mounted on the undercarriage, mounting wheels for the undercarriage having friction surfaces for inhibiting slipping of the undercarriage, a swivel mounting connecting the said undercarriage to the frame, a guide rod on the frame adapted to slidably support said swivel mounting means on the undercarriage for constraining the undercarriage to move in a definite path relative to the frame, a steering bar for the undercarriage for guiding the direction of travel of the undercarriage over a surface on which the instrument is being operated, a support on the frame adjacent to one end thereof, resilient tension means secured to the undercarriage and to the said support and acting on the undercarriage in the direction of the support, and means enabling adjustment of the said support relative to the frame for adjusting the location of the support on the frame for exerting a pull on the undercarriage in the direction of travel of the undercarriage over the surface on which the instrument is being operated.

3. An instrument for plotting the routing of floods, which comprises a frame having a slotted guide member and a stem member extending from the guide member at substantially right angles thereto, the guide member and stem member forming a substantially T-shaped frame, an undercarriage for the frame, tracing means mounted on the guide member, means enabling longitudinal and transverse adjustment of the tracing means relative to the guide member, a pivotal connection between the undercarriage and the frame, the pivotal connection being mounted in the slot of the slotted guide member, the said stem member of the frame including a worm screw mounted for predetermined rotation, a nut mounted on the screw for travel along the screw responsively to rotation of the screw, a swivel slide mounted on the nut, a forwardly extending arm of the undercarriage pivotally connected to the swivel slide and to the pivotal connection for the undercarriage in the said slotted guide member, a scale mounted adjacent to the said screw and extending parallel thereto, a pointer carried by the nut and extending over the scale to indicate the position of the nut, means for rotating the screw, spaced wheels for the undercarriage, and a scribing element mounted on the undercarriage at the pivotal connection between the undercarriage and the slotted frame member.

4. An instrument for plotting the routing of floods, which comprises a frame having a slotted guide member and a stem member extending from the guide member at substantially right angles thereto, the guide member and stem member forming a substantially T-shaped frame, an undercarriage for the frame, tracing means mounted on the guide member, means enabling longitudinal and transverse adjustment of the tracing means relative to the guide member, a pivotal connection between the undercarriage and the frame, the pivotal connection being mounted in the slot of the slotted guide member, a slide member mounted on the frame extending parallel to and adjacent to the stem member of the frame, the said stem member of the frame including a worm screw mounted for predetermined rotation, a nut mounted on the screw for travel along the screw responsively to rotation of the screw, a swivel slide mounted on the slide member and interconnected to the nut, a forwardly extending arm of the undercarriage pivotally connected to the swivel slide and to the pivotal connection for the undercarriage in the said slotted guide member, a scale mounted adjacent to the said worm screw and extending parallel thereto, a pointer carried by the said nut and extending over the said scale for indicating the position of the nut on the screw, means for rotating the screw, spaced wheels for the undercarriage, a scribing element mounted on the undercarriage at the pivotal connection between the undercarriage and the slotted frame member, and mounting means for the frame positioned at the ends of the frame.

5. An instrument for plotting the routing of floods which comprises a frame having a stem member and a guide member connected at right angles to said stem member, an undercarriage, a steering bar connected to said undercarriage, a swivel mounting supported on said stem member and longitudinally adjustable thereon, and a slide piece connected to said swivel mounting adapted to slidably receive the steering bar of said undercarriage, a tracing pointer longitudinally movable along said guide member and adapted to be set at a fixed position thereon, a tubular guide post connectedto said steering bar and longitudinally movable along said guide member, a stylus mounted within said guide post, an axle block mounted on said guide post, an axle connected to said axle block, wheels mounted on said axle, and a supporting leg connected to said stem member and to each end of said guide member adapted to support said frame above said undercarriage to allow free movement of the undercarriage beneath said frame.

6. An instrument for plotting the routing of floods which comprises a frame having a stem member and parallelly arranged guide bars connected at right angles to said stem member, an undercarriage, a steering bar connected to said undercarriage, a swivel mounting including a nut member supported on said stem member and longitudinally adjustable thereon, a worm screw adapted to engage said nut member to effect longitudinal movement of said swivel mounting, a scale mounted on said stem member parallel to said worm screw, a slide piece connected to said swivel mounting adapted to slidably receive the steering bar of said undercarriage, a tracing pointer connected to and longitudinally movable along said guidemember and adapted to be set at a fixed position thereon, a tubular guide post connected to said steering bar and longitudinally movable along said guide member, a stylus mounted within said guide post, an axle block mounted on said guide post, an axle connected to said axle block, wheels mounted on said axle, and a supporting leg connected to said stem member and to each end of said guide member adapted to support said frame above said undercarriage to allow free movement of the undercar- 10 riage beneath said frame.

FRANK B. HARKNESS.

10 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,326,318 Eaca Dec. 30, 1919 1,380,754 van Bogaert June '7, 1921 2,063,7'76 Wozny Dec. 8, 1936 ZFGREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 28,737 Great Britain 1910 94,040

Switzerland June 25, 1919 

